Tuesday, 17 September 2013

Stuck Fast

River Canal Rescue was
recently called out to help Jane Pollard, ‘About Time’ owner, after her boat
got caught on the cill of lock 9w on the Huddersfield Canal. The
freak accident occurred as she was part way though leaving the lock, the boat
became caught on the front sill, and unable to reverse, the bow quickly became
stuck and within minutes the vessel was starting to take on water in the
stern. Jane ran around the lock roping the boat to secure it, and
following the quick arrival of the Canal & River Trust (who emptied
the pounds above the lock), the boat finally came to rest at a 45 degree
angle with the bow wedged in the entrance and the stern on the bottom of the
lock.

Jane, her friend and dog
evacuated ‘About Time’. They realised that due to the lock position (one
mile from any road access), the lock width and position of the boat, the
waterway would need to be closed and a specialist team brought in.

Initially a local
contractor attempted to refloat the boat, but this was stopped on health and safety
grounds. The following day, with the approval of C & RT, RCR’s team
started work. The boat’s inlets were sealed and a canvas ‘bag’ was strung
over the stern to deflect water from entering the vessel. Pumps were
placed on board to pump out any water that did get in and the vessel was
secured by distributing the load over the bollards.

After four hours of
gentle persuasion (and a five-man team), the boat was successfully refloated,
moved to a secure location and towed back to Portland basin for repairs and dry
out.

RCR Managing Director,
Stephanie Horton, comments: “This was a technically difficult and challenging
rescue; there was no access for cranes and no other options…in fact only a
helicopter might have helped. C&RT later reported they found an obstruction
wedged in the paddles which may have caused the issue.”

Despite the ordeal, Jane
is full of praise for RCR, the C& RT and her insurers, Haven Knox Johnson:
“This was a very complicated situation, but thankfully no one was hurt and the
boat is structurally sound. Everyone involved was amazing and I’m full of
praise for them all.”